Song: "A Blackened Heart" - Peter Gundry
What is anxiety?
Tracey had an idea of what it was. His golden-brown eyes shimmered like a million fireflies under the full moon. A warm, tropical breeze passed through his black locks and green and purple, ninja-style, tunic-like shirt. He stared at the sirens and claxtons who prayed under the eerie moonlight.
Tracey kicked off his boots and dug his toes into the fluffy, white sand, which felt like a feather-filled pillow. He held his arms out to his sides. His large, green, and purple wings flapped gently behind him. They danced with the wind.
Tracey pushed himself into the South Pacific-like lagoon. He hopped over a line of slick rocks and stopped at the very end, right in time to see the sirens and claxtons break apart. They created an opening in the turquoise water.
What is anxiety?
Tracey feared his claxton powers. He also feared the very man who just rose out of the ocean.
The Octopus Man/Tracey's anxiety waved his eight Kraken-like arms. He pointed his golden trident at him, and his eyes glowed blue. He loomed over the teenager like a frightened mountain that thought about retreating into the Earth's core because the real world was too much for it to handle. That was how Tracey felt.
"Come, my nephew," bellowed the Octopus Man. "You belong in the world of the claxtons!"
No, Tracey did not. To defeat Poseidon himself, he had to overcome all the fear and anger he had held onto for the past few years.
Tracey yelled when a fear-covered arrow pierced his throbbing head. Storm clouds emerged, and white, purple, and yellow lightning flashed. Another gust of wind knocked over a few palm trees on the beach. Broken or not, coconuts rolled to Tracey's feet and tapped his ankles. The urge was almost too apparent.
Tracey leaped into the sky. He glared at Poseidon and growled, "I'm not a claxton." Closing his eyes, he cupped his tanned hands. A ball of green and purple light moved in on his monstrous anxiety.
The sirens and claxtons swam around the enemy. Powerful waves slammed against the Octopus Man as the ocean assisted Merlin's apprentice.
What is anxiety?
Tracey smacked it with his spell. "It's nothing but a burden!" he shouted.
Poseidon, the sirens, and the claxtons retreated into the lagoon when they heard his grit determination. They returned to the line and crossed over to the ocean.
"And stay away from Merlin's Island!" Tracey shouted from behind. Finally, finally, he could relax. No more anxious thoughts ticked in his brain like a bomb. Even though his dad was one, he was not a claxton, the evilest being in the Magic World. Tracey was not him.
Now free from his two-year torment, he soared across the lagoon. Green and purple dust trailed behind him. He flew beyond the line and met up with Ezra.
The humpback whale—Tracey's peace and reward—sprouted water from his blowhole. He sang his song—a lullaby that was all too familiar—and lifted his tail out of the water.
Tracey landed on the bumpy tubercles on Ezra's nose. He peered into his green eyes and then twirled on one foot. His wings sparkled with dust.
"Well, Tracey, you sure are excited," Ezra told him telepathically.
"Of course I am! I did it, Ezra! I overcame my anxiety!" Tracey dropped his wings behind him and plopped down.
The storm clouds broke apart to reveal a beautiful, starry sky. The Milky Way took up the whole length of it. Merlin's Island was nothing but a shadow on the horizon.
Tracey hugged Ezra's forehead. His tubercles bit into his skin, but he couldn't care less.
"I did it," Tracey repeated. "I am not a claxton, a merman, or a human. I am a fairy."
What is anxiety?
Word Count: 644
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The Boy Shrouded in Green and Purple
Historia Corta|CLAXTON SPIN-OFF STORIES| What is Anxiety?: Tracey, fearing his claxton powers, duels the Octopus Man to learn how to overcome his anxiety and become the claxton he's destined to be, unaware it's the start of his ultimate journey. The Boy Shrouded...